Grip for a golf club

ABSTRACT

The invention provides a grip for a golf club and a method of manufacturing thereof. The grip comprises a gripping member having a base portion extending longitudinally along a portion of the gripping member adapted to engage one or more palms when held by one or more hands of a user, and at least two side portions extending from said base portion; wherein the at least two side portions are inclined towards one another, such that when the based portion is engaged by the one or more palms of the user during a holding, one or more fingers of the or each of the user&#39;s hands are guided to rest on the at least two inclined side portions to thereby reduce or restrict mobility of joints at the user&#39;s hands and arms.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation of the International Application No.PCT/CN2016/089907, filed Jul. 13, 2016, which claims priority to U.S.Provisional Patent Application No. 62/221,179, filed Sep. 21, 2015, allof which are incorporated herein by reference in their entirety.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The invention relates to the field of sports equipment and, particularlybut not exclusively, to a grip for use in a sports equipment such as agolf club.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Like many sports, the sport of golf requires precision at a chain ofevents which relies heavily on fine control and coordination between theplayer and the golf club. Traditional golf clubs such as putting clubs,which are also commonly called “putters”, are often equipped with handgrips aimed to improve hand feel, to assist a tighter holding, as wellas to facilitate a smoother movement of the hands and arms of the user.For example, most of the traditional putter grips are designed toencourage mobility of the joints in the hands and arms. One typicaldesign is to provide the putter grip with a substantially cylindricalbody, and optionally with a flat top surface for the user to positiontheir thumb pads, such those as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2. Thisconfiguration enables the palms of the user to face each other onopposing sides of the grip during a holding action, which is known toallow good mobility of the joints at the hands and arms to enable a fullrange of motion. Nevertheless, such mobility may also encourageinconsistencies in control, which may result in undesirable rotation ofthe putter during the holding, and thus misalignment to target anddeviation of intended ball path. This is particularly difficult forgolfers who suffer from the “yips”—a movement disorder known tointerfere with putting—which is known to be a relatively common movementdisorder leading to involuntary joint movements in hands and arms.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

An object of the present invention is to provide an improved grip for agolf club.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a golf club havinga novel grip configured to reduce mobility of the joints at the user'shands and arms in use.

A further object of the present invention is to mitigate or obviate tosome degree one or more problems associated with known grips for golfclubs.

The above objects are met by the combination of features of the mainclaims; the sub-claims disclose further advantageous embodiments of theinvention.

One skilled in the art will derive from the following description otherobjects of the invention. Therefore, the foregoing statements of objectare not exhaustive and serve merely to illustrate some of the manyobjects of the present invention.

In general, the invention provides a grip for use in a golf club suchas, but not limited to, a putting club or putter. Specifically, the gripis configured such that, when being held by a user's hands in use, itguides the user into a specific holding posture which reduces orrestricts the degree of movement available at the user's hands and arms.Particularly, the invention provides a grip comprising a gripping memberwhich extends longitudinally along at least a part of the grip. Thegripping member comprises a longitudinal base portion and at least twoangled side portions extending from the base portion. When the baseportion engages medial or central parts of the user's palms when thegrip is being held, the user's fingers are guided and encouraged tonaturally rest onto the respective base portions of the gripping member.With this specific holding posture, mobility of the joints at the user'shands and arms, and particularly when during a putting and/or a swing,will be substantially reduced or restrict to allow control andconsistency over the series of motions required during the play. Thelimitation to joints movement is particularly beneficial to players whoexperience involuntary hands and arms movement, such as those who sufferfrom the yips. Furthermore, the holding posture results in both of theuser's palms facing forwards from a back surface of the gripping member,i.e. the palms are not opposed to each other as in a typical putterholding posture, but both facing the same direction.

In a first main aspect, the invention provides a grip for a golf club.The grip comprises a gripping member having a base portion extendinglongitudinally along a portion of the gripping member adapted to engageone or more palms when held by one or more hands of a user, and at leasttwo side portions extending from said base portion; wherein the at leasttwo side portions are inclined towards one another, such that when thebased portion is engaged by the one or more palms of the user during aholding, one or more fingers of the or each of the user's hands areguided to rest on the at least two inclined side portions to therebyreduce or restrict mobility of joints at the user's hands and arms.

In a second main aspect, the invention provides a golf club comprisingthe grip according to the first aspect.

In a third main aspect, the invention provides a method of manufacturinga grip for a golf club. The method comprises the step of providing agrip body and providing a gripping member. The gripping member has abase portion extending longitudinally along a portion of the grippingmember adapted to engage one or more palms when held by one or morehands of a user, and at least two side portions extending from said baseportion; wherein the at least two side portions are inclined towards oneanother, such that when the based portion is engaged by the one or morepalms of the user during a holding, one or more fingers of the or eachof the user's hands are guided to rest on the at least two inclined sideportions to thereby reduce or restrict mobility of joints at the user'shands and arms.

The summary of the invention does not necessarily disclose all thefeatures essential for defining the invention; the invention may residein a sub-combination of the disclosed features.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The foregoing and further features of the present invention will beapparent from the following description of preferred embodiments whichare provided by way of example only in connection with the accompanyingfigure, of which:

FIG. 1 shows the holding at a conventional putter grip in the prior art;

FIG. 2 shows the holding at another conventional putter grip in theprior art;

FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing an embodiment of a grip for aputter according to the present invention;

FIG. 4 is a bottom view showing a base portion of the grip of FIG. 3;

FIG. 5 is a top view showing two side portions and a front edge of thegrip of FIG. 3;

FIG. 6 is a side view showing the grip of FIG. 3;

FIG. 7 is a front view showing a shaft receiving portion of the grip ofFigure 3;

FIG. 8 is a rear view of the grip of FIG. 3;

FIG. 9 shows the holding of the grip of FIG. 3 by a user; and

FIG. 10 is a full body view of FIG. 9 showing position of the hands andthe wrists of the user.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

The following description is of preferred embodiments by way of exampleonly and without limitation to the combination of features necessary forcarrying the invention into effect.

Reference in this specification to “one embodiment” or “an embodiment”means that a particular feature, structure, or characteristic describedin connection with the embodiment is included in at least one embodimentof the invention. The appearances of the phrase “in one embodiment” invarious places in the specification are not necessarily all referring tothe same embodiment, nor are separate or alternative embodimentsmutually exclusive of other embodiments. Moreover, various features aredescribed which may be exhibited by some embodiments and not by others.Similarly, various requirements are described which may be requirementsfor some embodiments but not other embodiments.

The present invention relates to a hand grip or grip for use in a golfclub. Although specific embodiments of putter grips have been describedand illustrated in the present description, the present invention isgenerally applicable to any known type of golf clubs, such as woods,irons and putters, etc. and therefore, the scope of the presentinvention is not limited to a grip for use in a putting club, althoughthis is its preferred application. In addition, a person skilled in theart will also appreciate that the grip of the present invention will beapplicable in other types of sports equipment which requires handgripping by the user, as long as such application does not depart fromthe spirit and scope of the present invention.

In the context of the present description, any descriptions on thedimensions of the grip, components of the grip and/or the golf club inone or more embodiments generally relate to exemplified dimensions ofsuch item or items in their average, standard sizes suitable for use bya user with an average palm size and body height. It will be apparent tothe skilled person that any proportional variations based on thedescribed dimensions, for example, a reduction in the overall dimensionof grip and/or a golf club so as to fit a user with a smaller thanaverage palm size such as, a child or a teenager, shall also beencompassed.

Referring to FIG. 3, shown is an embodiment of a grip 10 for use in agolf club such as a putting club in accordance with the presentinvention. The grip 10 comprises a gripping member 20 which extendsalong at least part of the grip 10 at a distance sufficient to enable auser to place two hands on the gripping member 20 in longitudinalalignment, for example, with one hand behind another along alongitudinal axis of the gripping member 20, or alternatively, withoverlapping or partially overlapping hands on the gripping member 20. Inone embodiment, the gripping member 20 extends along at least part ofthe grip 10 a distance of at least about 14 inches.

It is preferred for the gripping member 20 to be manufactured from alight-weight material such as, but not limited to, one or more ofrubber, leather, wood, cork, as well as synthetic polymers such aspolyurethane (PU), polyvinyl chloride (PVC) and poly (ethylene-vinylacetate) (PEVA), etc. Without being limited to the specific materialsdescribed above, a person skilled in the art will appreciate that manyother materials which are considered suitable and applicable to thepresent invention, should also be encompassed.

As shown in FIGS. 3 to 6, the gripping member 20 is preferred tocomprise a base portion 22 extending longitudinally along a portion ofthe gripping member 20 adapted to engage one or more palms, and morespecifically, medial or central parts of the user's palms, when held byone or more hands of a user during a golf play, and at least two sideportions 24 extending from said base portion 22. The at least two sideportions 24 are configured to incline towards one another, such thatwhen the based portion 22 is engaged by the one or more palms of theuser during a holding, one or more fingers of the or each of the user'shands are guided to rest on the at least two opposed inclined sideportions 24 to thereby reduce or restrict mobility of joints at theuser's hands and/or arms.

In the embodiment as shown in the figures, the longitudinal base portion22 of the gripping member 20 is arranged at a rear or bottom side of thegrip 10 relative to a direction of extension of a ball striking surfaceof the golf club or putter head. In addition, the at least two sideportions 24 are each configured to extend a sufficient distance awayfrom the base portion 22 such that, where medial or central parts of theuser's palms engage the base portion 22 during a holding, one or morefinger pads of respective hands of the user are allowed to engage therespective opposed inclined side portions 22. More particularly, the twoinclined side portions 24 are arranged such that, when the base portion22 is engaged by medial or central parts of the user's palms during aholding, one or more thumb pads of the respective hands of the user areallowed to engage the respective opposing side portions as on the sideswhere their respective wrists are located, with the thumbs aligningsubstantially in a direction of the longitudinal axis of the grippingmember 20. In one embodiment, medial or central parts of the user'spalms engaging the longitudinal base portion 22 of the gripping member20 are substantially longitudinally aligned, with the user's thumb padsengaging respective inclined side portions 24 on same sides of thegripping member 20 as their respective wrists.

Specifically, the two side portions 24 are substantially flat andinclined towards each other to meet at a front edge 25 opposing the baseportion 22 of the gripping member 20. In one specific embodiment, eachof the side portions is of about 1 inch in width extending from the baseportion 22 towards the front edge 25. The two side portions 24 define anacute angle therebetween, which may range from about 20 deg to about 80deg, but preferably 25 deg to 50 deg and even more preferably 35 deg to45 deg.

The base portion 22 is configured with a width ranged from about 1.0inch to about 1.5 inches, but preferably about 1.25 inches. Preferably,the base portion 22 comprises a curved surface having a substantiallysemi-cylindrical surface conforms with the shape of the palm of theuser. The semi-cylindrical surface can be configured with a radius ofcurvature of about 0.5 inch to about 0.75 inch, with the curved surfacebeing positioned substantially symmetrically about a centrallongitudinal axis or plane of the gripping member 20. In one preferredembodiment, the base portion 22 defines a curved, segmentalcross-section having a chord of about 1.25 inches in length. In afurther embodiment, the gripping member 20 comprises a substantiallyconstant cross-section as defined by the base portion 22 and the twoside portions 24 along its length, with a cross-sectional height ofabout 0.75 inch for the base portion 22, and a total height of about 1.2inches to a maximum of 1.75 inches, and more preferably, 1.75 inchesalong the central vertical plane. The central axis of the curved baseportion 22 is preferably coincident or substantially parallel with alongitudinal axis of a golf club shaft. These specific dimensions andconfigurations allow a user with average sized hands, when closing hisor her palms to hold onto the gripping member 20, to naturally rest thethumbs and the other fingers on respective different sides of theopposed inclined side portions 24 and at the same time, to maintain themedial or central parts of the palms facing upwards when the club is ina horizontal orientation and to substantially align with, for example,the front edge 25 of the griping member 20. This guided holding posturereduces rotational movements of the user's hands and/or arms about thecentral axis of the grip 10, which results in a reduction or restrictionof mobility of joints at the user's hands and/or arms. This is incontrast to the holding effect offered by the conventional golf grips,on which palms of the user are encouraged to turn over or rotatesideways to face each other so as to allow a maximum mobility at thejoints.

In one embodiment, the grip 10 may further comprise an elongated gripbody 12 having a shaft receiving portion 30 as shown in FIG. 7 adaptedto receive a shaft of a golf club. The shaft receiving portion 30 maycomprise a bore 32 extending longitudinally and at least partially alongthe grip 10. Preferably, the bore 32 is positioned offset to at leastone of a central vertical plane (v-v) and a central horizontal plane(h-h) of the grip 10, as more clearly shown in the figure (FIG. 7), tothereby allow a better sensation of the weight and thus a betterrecognition of the rotation of the golf shaft when held in the hands.

In one embodiment, the gripping member 20 can be provided in the form ofa sleeve capable of permanently or releasably receiving or slipping overthe grip body 12. Alternatively, the gripping member 20 can bemanufactured integrally with the grip body 12 connectable with a shaftof a golf club. In a further embodiment, the gripping member 20, thegrip body 12 and the shaft of the golf club may also be integrallyformed in one piece, with the gripping member 20 being arranged toextend in a direction substantially parallel to an axis of a shaft ofthe golf club.

The gripping member 20 can be formed of one or more anti-slippingmaterials and/or provided on the gripping surface with one or moreanti-slipping patterns. In one preferred embodiment, the grip 10 can beof a weight less than or equal to about 100 grams. In a furtherembodiment, a counter weight can be arranged and positioned at a freeend of the grip body 12 distal to a head of the golf club. FIG. 8further shows a rear end 14 of the grip body 12. The receiving portion30 of the grip body 12 may receive the shaft of the golf club all theway to the rear end 14. Alternatively, the shaft may stop a few inchesbefore reaching the rear end 14 to thereby reserve space for positioninga counter weight.

The present invention further relates to a method of manufacturing agrip 10 for a golf club as described above. The method comprises thestep of providing a grip body 12 by any known manufacturing methods suchas, but not limited to, molding, 3-dimensional printing, carving,sculpting, etc. The method further comprises the step of providing agripping member 20 as hereinbefore described.

The present invention is advantageous in that it allows, when the medialor central part of the user's palms engage the base portion of thegripping member during a holding at the golf grip, the user's fingers tobe guided and encouraged by the specific configuration of the grip torest comfortably on the respective inclined base portions of thegripping member, as shown in FIGS. 9 and 10. FIG. 9 shows the holdingposture when the golf club is in a horizontal orientation and FIG. 10shows the holding posture when the club is in an in use orientation,e.g. a putting orientation. Positioning of the palms and the fingers andtherefore the corresponding holding posture are naturally guided by thespecific configuration of the grip, which keep the palms of the userfacing upward when the club is horizontal, i.e. substantially alignedwith and facing the front edge of the gripping member during the grip,as shown in FIG. 9. The thumb and the other fingers of one hand areencouraged to rest on the two respective side portions, i.e. the thumbat one side and the other fingers at the other side, with the thumb andthe wrist of the same hand being substantially aligned and arranged atthe same side and direction, as shown in FIG. 10. The specificdimensions of the grip further assist in reducing rotational movement ofthe user's palms about the longitudinal axis of the grip. This holdingposture, as allowed by the specific configuration of the grip of thepresent invention, substantially reduces or restricts mobility of jointsat the user's hands and arms during a putting and/or a swinging actionor a series of actions during a golf play. The restriction in jointmovement is particularly beneficial to players who experienceinvoluntary movements at their hands and/or arms, such as those who aresuffered from the YIPS.

The present description illustrates the principles of the presentinvention. It will thus be appreciated that those skilled in the artwill be able to devise various arrangements that, although notexplicitly described or shown herein, embody the principles of theinvention and are included within its spirit and scope.

Moreover, all statements herein reciting principles, aspects, andembodiments of the invention, as well as specific examples thereof, areintended to encompass both structural and functional equivalentsthereof. Additionally, it is intended that such equivalents include bothcurrently known equivalents as well as equivalents developed in thefuture, i.e., any elements developed that perform the same function,regardless of structure.

While the invention has been illustrated and described in detail in thedrawings and foregoing description, the same is to be considered asillustrative and not restrictive in character, it being understood thatonly exemplary embodiments have been shown and described and do notlimit the scope of the invention in any manner. It can be appreciatedthat any of the features described herein may be used with anyembodiment. The illustrative embodiments are not exclusive of each otheror of other embodiments not recited herein. Accordingly, the inventionalso provides embodiments that comprise combinations of one or more ofthe illustrative embodiments described above. Modifications andvariations of the invention as herein set forth can be made withoutdeparting from the spirit and scope thereof, and, therefore, only suchlimitations should be imposed as are indicated by the appended claims.

In the claims hereof, any element expressed as a means for performing aspecified function is intended to encompass any way of performing thatfunction. The invention as defined by such claims resides in the factthat the functionalities provided by the various recited means arecombined and brought together in the manner which the claims call for.It is thus regarded that any means that can provide thosefunctionalities are equivalent to those shown herein.

In the claims which follow and in the preceding description of theinvention, except where the context requires otherwise due to expresslanguage or necessary implication, the word “comprise” or variationssuch as “comprises” or “comprising” is used in an inclusive sense, i.e.to specify the presence of the stated features but not to preclude thepresence or addition of further features in various embodiments of theinvention.

What is claimed is:
 1. A grip for a golf club, comprising: a grippingmember having: a base portion extending longitudinally along a portionof the gripping member adapted to engage one or more palms when held byone or more hands of a user, and at least two side portions extendingfrom said base portion; wherein the gripping member comprises asubstantially constant cross-section along its length, wherein the baseportion comprises a curved surface, and wherein the at least two sideportions are inclined towards one another, such that when the basedportion is engaged by the one or more palms of the user during aholding, one or more fingers of the or each of the user's hands areguided to rest on the at least two inclined side portions to therebyreduce or restrict mobility of joints at the user's hands and arms. 2.The grip according to claim 1, wherein the at least two side portionsdefine an acute angle therebetween and wherein the acute angle is rangedfrom about 20 deg to about 80 deg.
 3. The grip according to claim 1,wherein the at least two side portions meet at a front edge of thegripping member relative to the base portion and wherein the basedportion is of a width ranged from about 1.0 inch to about 1.5 inches. 4.The grip according to claim 1, wherein the curved surface comprises asubstantially semi-cylindrical surface having a radius of curvature ofabout 0.5 inch to about 0.75 inch.
 5. The grip according to claim 1,wherein the at least two side portions extend a sufficient distance awayfrom the base portion such that, when the base portion is engaged by theone or more user's palms during a holding, one or more finger pads ofrespective hands of the user are allowed to engage respective opposedinclined side portions.
 6. The grip according to claim 1, wherein the atleast two side portions are arranged such that, when the base portion isengaged by the one or more user's palms during a holding, one or morethumb pads of respective hands of the user are allowed to engage therespective side portions as their respective wrists.
 7. The gripaccording to claim 1, wherein the at least two side portions aresubstantially flat and are inclined towards a central vertical plane ofthe gripping member, the gripping member is of a height of about 1.2inches to about 1.75 inches along said central vertical plane.
 8. Thegrip according to claim 1, wherein the gripping member is configuredsubstantially symmetrically along a longitudinal central plane.
 9. Thegrip according to claim 1, wherein the gripping member is formed of oneor more anti-slipping materials and/or provided with one or moreanti-slipping patterns and is of a length of at least about 14 inches.10. The grip according to claim 1, further comprising a shaft receivingportion adapted to receive a shaft of a golf club.
 11. The gripaccording to claim 10, wherein the shaft receiving portion comprises abore extending longitudinally and at least partially along the grip andwherein the bore is arranged to offset from at least one of a centralvertical plane and a central horizontal plane of the grip.
 12. The gripaccording to claim 11, further comprising an elongated body comprisingthe shaft receiving portion and the gripping member.
 13. The gripaccording to claim 12, wherein the elongated body, the shaft receivingportion and the gripping member are integrally formed.
 14. The gripaccording to claim 1, wherein the gripping member is arranged to extendin a direction substantially parallel to an axis of a shaft of the golfclub.
 15. The grip according to claim 1, wherein the grip is of lessthan or equal to about 100 grams in weight.
 16. The grip according toclaim 1, further comprising a counter weight positioned at an end distalto a head of the golf club.
 17. A golf club comprising the gripaccording to claim
 1. 18. The golf club according to claim 17, whereinthe grip is integrally formed with a shaft of the golf club and whereinthe gripping member is integrally formed with the grip and a shaft ofthe golf club.
 19. The golf club according to claim 17, wherein the baseportion of the gripping member of the grip is positioned at a rear sideof the grip relative to a direction of extension of a ball strikingsurface of a head of the golf club and wherein the base portioncomprises a curve surface having a central axis substantially parallelto a longitudinal axis of a shaft of the golf club.
 20. A method ofmanufacturing a grip for a golf club, comprising the step of: providinga grip body; providing a gripping member having: a base portionextending longitudinally along a portion of the gripping member adaptedto engage one or more palms when held by one or more hands of a user,and at least two side portions extending from said base portion; whereinthe gripping member comprises a substantially constant cross-sectionalong its length, wherein the base portion comprises a curved surface,and wherein the at least two side portions are inclined towards oneanother, such that when the based portion is engaged by the one or morepalms of the user during a holding, one or more fingers of the or eachof the user's hands are guided to rest on the at least two inclined sideportions to thereby reduce or restrict mobility of joints at the user'shands and arms.